For months I have looked at posts of random Steemit meetups and always thought how awesome it would be to attend one of them. Then after planning a trip to Malaysia, I knew I would finally be able to attend one of them. Not just any meetup, but some of the coolest Steemians I can think of. With flights booked and bellies empty I knew the day has come where I would finally sit in on a meetup and be able to interact and talk Steemit face to face with awesome people.
I have met one Steemian in the past, the one and only 
Ahoi Team Malaysia!
I spoke with some of the Team Malaysia members after I let them know I will be coming to Malaysia. I was welcomed with open arms and they simply radiated friendliness. I want to especially thank 
We were staying at an AirBNB apartment complex with a great swimming pool and awesome views. We just had a nice swim and it was time to leave and finally meet everyone.
Not the best idea to hang out in the sun right before the meetup. I was pretty red and toasty from the sun, luckily it made me nice and hungry!
Time for Angry Coconuts! (AKA Durian)
Some would call this a test to see how Malaysian I am =P. I was nervous about the Durian "Challenge" and the whole trip it has haunted me a little. I know from personal experience that when it comes to eating new and adventurous things, texture is the first thing that might make me hate or love it.
The moment of truth and the Durians (yes, multiple) was on the table. As I picked it up all eyes were on me and 
It blew my mind. The taste is hard to describe, it is a mixture of so many interesting flavors all at once. The texture (my main concern) was way better than I expected. Soft and mushy, kind of like a mango or thin extra smooth peanut butter. To my surprise, I was pretty impressed by this interesting fruit. Malaysian test = PASSED!
can't wait to get her hands on more Durian, it was love at first bite!
and the cutest little baby Durian.We carried on to try a few varieties of Durian, I never even knew you get different Durians, guess you can think of it as wine. We all know it as wine but there are hundreds of different types and flavors. The same when it comes to Durians.
The Durian Crew
With Durian done, it was time to move on and meet more Steemians!
Next Stop, Flavor Town!
Next up was Bak Kut Teh and a bigger party of Steemians. This was going to be our main meal, but after all the Durian i was not extremely hungry. I was more excited to meet more of #teammalaysia. It was late afternoon, the sun was going down and there was not a breeze to be found. My slight sunburn sand it and I started to slowly cook from the inside out. Soon enough they told me that Durian is a "hot" food and it will for sure make my body feel a lot hotter than usual. So I was sitting with a heat hat-trick. The heat was crazy, but honestly, I didn't care. I was having a great time meeting and greeting as our party grew larger.
Just as we sat down 
We got comfy and had some iced tea to cool down.
It was time to dig into the main meal and it smelled absolutely amazing! Bak Kut Teh is traditional pork soup that contains pork ribs and some of the nitty gritty parts like pork intestines. Being from Korea I had not a drop of fear when it came to trying out all things pork. The flavors were nice and herbal, it had a very fresh taste to it and the meat simply melted in your mouth.
I know there were different kinds and I really should have taken some notes about it all, but I had just too much fun talking Steemit with everyone!
Santa visited Malaysia early this year!
I really had a great time with all the Malaysian even before the meetup and they have been nothing but good to me and the Qurator Project here on Steemit. I really wanted to give something back. I went with customized mouse pads that had their Steemit handle and also some Qurator sling bags. Just a little token of my appreciation for how awesome they are.
In this selfie below (Thanks to the selfie-master
Fatbaby! (They know my middle name =P)
Just kidding, Fatbaby was a little ice-cream shop that all the Steemians raided after the lovely dinner in the intense heat. The aircon was much appreciated and I could finally cool down a bit. By this time I was pretty full and wanted to leave some space for our last meal that all the Malaysian are raving about Nasi Lemak. Here we got into even more intense chatting about Steemit and all things crypto. I finally got a nice chat with
Fact time!
Did you know:
The Final stop and the best Malaysian dish by far!
We headed down to a local spot to finally try Nasi Lemak. The street was filled with tables and food lovers all around. What was so special about this dish?
So every Malaysian I ever spoke to told me about Nasi Lemak. The hype was all over the show and from pictures that I saw online I couldn't really wrap my head around it. It looked simple, BUT ladies and gentlemen, this dish is really a must try. Fried chicken, rice topped with a sunny side up egg, some cucumber and nuts, all served on a banana leaf.
I told you the Durian blew my mind, but I was never prepared for what I tasted next. Maybe the simplest looking dish in Malaysia but when it comes to taste, flavor and texture I was truly blown away. I have tried many kinds of fried chicken in my life and all of them are pretty much the same. I can't say the same for Nasi Lemak though. The fried chicken Kung-fu'd my taste buds and the flavor was almost too good to share. Within a minute we decided to order another plate, one to share simply isn't enough. The small amount of cucumber and nuts complimented the whole dish and brought it all together in a way that I can only describe as phenomenal. Hands down the best chicken I have ever tasted in my whole life.
After our meals we kept chatting away, the street stayed pretty busy well into the morning hours. The Nasi Lemak was no joke and I have gained much respect for the dish. I met a few more steemians and I had a chance to catch up with all of them. Such a lovely experience. =)
Time to say good-bye! =(
The lovely evening with all the awesome food and Steemians had to come to an end eventually. I was a bit sad to go but we were well into the morning hours.
All I can say is thank you@aaronleang and
Thank you, everyone, for making it a special night and the highlight of our trip to Malaysia. =)
All the Steemians that share this special night: 
On a side note, after visiting Malaysia and experiencing the awesome food, culture and people we are kind of considering spending a year or two there. Still a lot to take into consideration and some planning to be done. This means I will move to a permanent summer vibe and all you can eat Nasi Lemak. Why not? Right?!
Thanks again everyone. It was amazing!
Not all photos are mine, they are a mixture of all the steemians who attended the meetup. =)
Did you hear about the Qurator witness? Qurator is my main project here on steemit and it has grown to over 1400 members. We are proud to announce the witness is now live! If you like what I do here on Steemit consider voting for Qurator as a witness. =)
Via steemit.com.
- Via SteemConnect.